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Reservations about the death penalty should not bar one from a jury

1968

A person who expresses reservations about the death penalty is not necessarily unfit to serve on a jury, the Supreme Court rules in Witherspoon v. Illinois. The Court holds that a prosecutor can “strike” a person from the jury “for cause” (that is, because of indications that the person cannot be fair) only if the potential juror cannot make an impartial decision about imposing the death penalty.